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PRCC offering holiday mini-term classes for first time

POPLARVILLE _ Students willing to trade their traditional time off school for a fast course will now have that opportunity at Pearl River Community College.

Starting in December for the first time, PRCC will offer two-week mini-term classes at both the Poplarville campus and the Forrest County Center in Hattiesburg.

“Our observation is that students who come home for the holidays have expressed an interest in getting an accelerated course out of the way,” said Dr. Martha Lou Smith, vice president for General Education and Technology Services at PRCC.

“We expect these students to be high achievers who are looking for a way to finish their degrees,” she said. “It is a sacrifice for the students during the holidays but they understand how important it is to stay on track.”

Mini-term classes will begin Dec. 10 and end Dec. 21 with finals being Saturday, Dec. 22. They will meet five days a week, four and one-half hours a day. These are not online classes.

Forrest County Center classes that will meet from 8 a.m. till 12:30 p.m. include English Composition I and II, World Literature I, General Psychology, Cultural Anthropology and Public Speaking I.

Poplarville classes that will meet from 8 a.m. till 12:30 p.m. include Music Appreciation (non-music majors), General Psychology and Public Speaking I. World Literature I will meet from noon to 4:30 p.m. Two Child Development Technology classes will also meet during this time.

Dr. Smith believes mini-term classes offer some students an academic advantage. “The student does not have a lot of time to forget the material that was presented the day before,” she said. “It tends to give them immersion in whatever discipline it is.”

She said it takes a commitment from students. “Missing a day would be like missing two weeks of classes,” said Dr. Smith. “These will be intense classes.”

She expects these mini-term classes to be attractive to four-year college students home for the holidays. “Some of them may have found it hard to get a class at a bigger school,” said Dr. Smith. “This way they can come home and take a class.”

PRCC students can apply the mini-term courses to their spring financial aid. Otherwise, the cost is $115 per credit hour plus any applicable fees.

If you are currently a PRCC student, enroll in the classes by logging into RiverGuide and registering. If you are not a current PRCC student, go to the PRCC website and select “Future Students.” From there, select the appropriate link to enroll as a student at PRCC.